Vindicated
by MizSniz
Summary: LOSTDr. QuinnDawson’s Creek crossover. JackColleen Romance. While Dr. Jack Shepard boards the plane with a briefcase for his carry-on, Colleen Cooper carries her tale of abuse. Can they both get past their emotional hang-ups long enough to fall in love?


**Vindicated**

Disclaimer: I do not own the following: LOST; Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman; or Dawson's Creek. They are the property of their respective owners. I am making no profit on these stories I write; they are purely for entertainment value. I also do not own the Dashboard Confessional lyrics "Vindicated."

Author's Note: I have taken some creative liberties writing this story. Dr. Michaela Quinn is Colleen, Matthew, and Brian's biological mother. She is married to Sullivan Cooper ("Sully") and he is their biological father. So far, as the story is a work in progress, there aren't ties to Colorado Springs.

Summary: LOST/Dr. Quinn/Dawson's Creek crossover. Jack/Colleen Romance. While Dr. Jack Shepard boards the plane with a briefcase for his carry-on, Colleen Cooper carries her tale of abuse. Can they both get past their emotional hang-ups long enough to fall in love?

Pairing: Jack/Colleen

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Chapter One: Hope Dangles on a String. . .

* * *

_Hope dangles on a string_

_Like slow spinning redemption_

_Winding in and winding out_

_The shine of it has caught my eye. . ._

* * *

She took a cab to the airport. The rental she had would be too risky, he would find her. Sitting in the surprisingly clean cab, she was afraid. . . 

The ride was short enough, but to her it felt like it took hours. That was what anxiousness did to a person, she supposed. At the airport she checked her luggage. One clothing bag, one suitcase, an overnight bag, and then she had her carry-on. Dawson drug her to Sydney with him; she didn't particularly want to go, but if he said "jump" she said "how high?" That was to end now, she thought decisively.

She boarded the plane with a determined, yet victorious, smile on her face. _Flight 978 departing from Sydney, destination Boston, Massachusetts._ She finally did it. _Departure time 11:45 A.M_. The plane was booked to capacity, she checked. There was no chance he could have gotten on. _Row J._ After years of his abuse she had gotten the courage to walk away. She was doing one better, she was _flying_ away. _Seat 3_. And things were looking up already. The last seat they had available was a window seat.

She sat down, got comfortable, and waited. Staring out the window, she thought to herself 'things were going to be okay.' A dark haired young man, with equally dark eyes, sat down beside her. He was handsome in a quiet way, not striking to most people, but to her he was gorgeous.

Jack was twenty-nine years old, never married-never in love- and successful. At such a young age he had just finished his residency in spinal surgery at Harvard. But a great deal of his future plans hung in limbo. His father, renowned surgeon Dr. Martin Shepard, had just passed away, leaving young Dr. Jack with a practice all of his own. He never wanted to go to Sydney; in a strange way he resented his father for sending him on a wild goose chase all over Australia that ended with the discovery of his body in the morgue of Sydney's seediest hospital.

Jack glanced over to his left. His breath caught silently in his throat for an instant when he saw her, the spicy, auburn haired beauty with the chocolaty brown eyes. He looked on her with ignorant admiration, ignorant of her, ignorant of her story, but it wouldn't stay that way. With one glance into her deep brown eyes he felt like he knew her, she was almost that easy to read. While the melancholy distance in her eyes gave away her sadness, he was ignorant of the events that transpired to bring her to such a sad state, to Sydney, to the plane, and, unknowingly, ultimately to him.

Quiet they remained for nearly three hours. She was lost in her thoughts of freedom; but, she wondered, was she truly free? She feared she would never be free, free of his tyrant reign. For emotional abuse was as scarring as the physical. Would she have to pay her life for her chance to live?

Fatigue set into Jack. With little to no sleep for the last week he was more than a little tired. He wished he could nod off for a little while but he knew it would be useless. He had never been able to sleep on planes.

She looked over at him. "Try to sleep. I'll wake you when it's time."

He smiled at her gesture. "Thank you, but I have never managed to sleep on planes." She nodded in understanding. "I'm Jack Shepard."

"Colleen Cooper. It's nice to meet you, Jack."

"Nice to meet you, too. Heading home?" He asked, curiously.

"Yeah, back to Capeside." Capeside was a small town in Massachusetts. Almost everyone knew everyone. No one could keep secrets . . . but her.

"Capeside, huh? Nice little place." Capeside was about an hour and a half outside of Boston. A lot of the richer people would weekend there over the summer. Many weekends Jack spent on the water just outside Capeside Harbor.

"You know it?" She asked, surprised.

"I've been sailing there many times."

"I see. I like it, but I suppose I would, it's home. Where are you from?"

"Boston, born and raised. I've never lived anywhere else, not even when I went to college."

"I haven't lived in Capeside for years, actually. I went to Boston College and then I just stayed in the city for a while. I loved Boston, but I ended up getting a job in New York, so I went."

"What do you do?" He asked.

"I am an interpreter. I always had a knack for languages so I just went with it. What do you do?"

"I'm a spinal surgeon. Family business." He laughed an ironic laugh. Some family. . .

"That's great. My mother's a--" The plane lurched forward, cutting her off.

They both looked at each other and laughed. Everything was okay, after all planes were safer than cars. The captain came online and said not to worry, that they were just in for a little turbulence.

"What were you saying?" Jack asked Colleen.

"Oh, right. I was just going to say that my mother's a doctor, that's all."

"What's her specialty?"

"Cardiology," she replied. "Her father died when she was in high school of a heart attack. He was the founder of Beacon Hill Research. His death impacted her decision to become a doctor." Beacon Hill Research was a prestigious medical group in Boston.

"Your grandfather was Josef Quinn?"

"Yep." The plane lurched again, this time more violently.

Jack looked around the plane and then at Colleen. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. You?"

"Great, just great--" There was a loud sound that came from the back of the plane and another violent upheaval. Suddenly the overhead compartments began falling open. Luggage was spilling out. A briefcase fell out in front of Jack, knocking the man one row ahead of him unconscious. The doctor in Jack took over; he unfastened his seatbelt and stood up to check on the older man. He was alive, but he was bleeding badly.

There was a roaring and he felt something pulling him down. Not knowing what was happening, because everything was happening so quickly, he fastened his seatbelt again. This decision would save his life.

Colleen looked toward the back of the plane where the roaring sound was coming from to find out there wasn't a back of the plane. The back of the plane had been ripped off. The roaring sound was the wind whipping around the cabin. Oxygen masks fell down from their holders and Jack instructed her to put it on. Fear was in his eyes which only caused her to be more afraid. She reached out and grasped his hand. He squeezed it and then everything went black.

He opened his eyes and all he could see was the clear, blue sky. Then he heard the gently lapping of the ocean. Where was he? Then he remembered the plane . . . and Colleen. He sat up from his sandy bed and felt a stabbing pain shoot through his back. There wasn't time for that now. Was she alive?

He scanned over the beach. No sign of her. Suddenly everything hit him. Where the hell were they? Some island, that was obvious but where? Last he knew they were somewhere in the South Pacific, but the South Pacific was a large body of water.

Colleen awoke in the in the sand. She didn't know how she got there until she saw a several people working on getting people out of the plane, or rather pieces of plane. How in the world did they survive? However they did she was grateful! Jack! Where was he? Her eyes roamed over the beach and then she spotted him. About 10 yards away, seemingly unconscious, he laid in the sand.

She walked toward him in the warm sun. He seemed to be okay. She needed a walk badly. Promising to be back soon, she took off down the beach. The jungle was dense and the island seemed large. Knowing better than to go too deep into the jungle she stayed by the edge. Flowers were blooming and she could smell their sweet perfume. Her muscles ached. Back in New York she would have gone to this little spa that worked wonders . . . back in New York. She worried about her family, what would they think? Surely they would be found soon, surely . . .

He was panicking. For some reason his brain wouldn't register the possibility of her death, it just wasn't possible. The shooting pain in his back was still plaguing him. He could feel the sticky caking on his back that he was certain was his blood. Not being able to see the wound, but certain from the amount of pain and blood he knew he needed stitches. Still, there wasn't time for that now. He was a doctor and there were people in need.

Surprisingly, people weren't that bad off, aside from those that died. He saw mostly bumps, bruises, cuts, and scrapes. He needed rubbing alcohol; this was definitely not a sterile environment. Apparently the front of the plane had broken off as well. If there were medical supplies to be had they would be in the front. It was very obvious that they needed to find the section. Finally he thought he could get away for a minute; he had to check on his wound. Walking away from the crash site a little way he found a sheltered spot on the edge of the jungle. With a mirror he tried to determine whether or not stitches were indeed warranted. They were.

Colleen walked back towards the site. She wanted to check on Jack, see if he was awake yet. On her way back she spotted him . . .

"You're awake." Jack looked up, startled. A grin spread out across his face.

"You're alive."

"I do what I can. Are you hurt?" She asked with concern.

"Kind of. I have a needle and thread. Can you sew?" He asked.

"Yeah, why?" Jack looked at her, trusting her.

"I need you to do something for me."

"What, Jack?"

"My back, I need stitches. Obviously I can't do it myself and I trust you."

She nodded and took the needle and thread hesitantly. "Are you sure about this?"

"Yes. I appreciate you doing this."

"Don't thank me yet." They both chuckled quietly. Colleen went to work. The wound itself wasn't horrible or all that large, but it was deep enough to require sutures. She worked quietly, afraid to speak. His skin was soft and warm from the sunlight. Finally the last stitch was in place. "All done," she announced.

He looked up at her. Despite the pain, he liked the contact of her gentle hand with his skin. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," she said, quietly.

"I passed out," he said, referring to the crash.

"I know. It was better than being awake through it."

"You didn't pass out?"

"Not until we hit land, then I was out." He nodded in understanding. "How is everyone?"

"They're okay, I think. I did what I could, but it doesn't seem like enough." Little did he know he would end up being the leader of the small group of people.

"Well, Jack, we don't know how long we might be on this island. You might have your chance." Jack studied Colleen. She honestly didn't seem all that worried. In fact, she seemed somewhat relieved.

Night fell quickly and soon the group built a large bonfire in hopes of being seen. Colleen often lapsed into her daydreams. Curiously, she felt safe on the island. Dawson would never find her here. If it took being stranded on some strange, South Pacific island, with a handsome young doctor, to get away from Dawson, it was worth it.

She was staring into the fire, lost in her thoughts again, when Jack sat down beside her.

"We got the tent up," he announced tiredly.

"A bunch of the luggage was scattered through the edge of the jungle. I found all of mine, actually."

"That's good. I suppose I should go and look for mine as well, but I think I will just wait until morning to do that."

"Get some sleep, Jack. You look exhausted."

"I am," he said. "But I probably wouldn't be able to sleep yet." She nodded.

"You did well today, Jack." He looked over at her, surprised at her praise.

"Thank you, for everything," he said.

"You don't have to thank me. I was just saying you did well."

"But I do have to thank you. I guess you could say that I'm not used to getting praise." She looked at him and saw some of the sadness in his eyes she assumed he was trying to hide . . .

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Please review! I am open to criticism, but please be nice about it!? I will try to update soon, but I have a test on Thursday, a midterm on Friday, two more tests on Monday and Tuesday, two papers due on Tuesday and one due a week from Thursday. Busy week, lol....


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